Page 25 of Beauty Of Her

“I don’t understand why you’re avoiding him when you had a great time the other night. And he seems to genuinely like you and keeps trying to talk to you. What are you afraid of?”

“Um, my heart can get gutted again?”

Amelia sighed, clicking her jaw. “Julia, you can’t live your life fearing getting hurt. I know it’s scary, and you’ve been through a lot, but you can’t keep using your past as an excuse to not take a chance on someone who could make you happy.”

“I’m not using it as an excuse,” I protested. “I just don’t want to rush into anything without thinking it through.”

Amelia’s phone chimed, saving her and me from another round of back and forth about what I should do. She whipped out the device and scrolled down the screen, pausing as she read an email. The corner of her mouth lifted, and a light flashed across her eyes. “I know what you’re going to do.” She pushed her phone to me, and I caught it.

I read her screen, frowning. It was a final email invite reminder for the annual advertising executive summit hosted in sunny Miami Beach—an event I always skipped that was happening in five days. When I lifted my gaze to meet Amelia’s, an idea was already brewing in her forever-spinning mind.

“I am not going to this.” I slid the phone back to her.

“Oh my God. But why?” Her eyes pleaded.

“Firstly, I never go. Secondly, everyone who does has either their spouse or a significant other with them. I don’t have either.”

“You have a Brett.” Amelia gave an exaggerated wink.

I groaned. “We’re not there yet.”

“But you could be,” Amelia insisted.

“I don’t think I’m ready for that,” I protested.

“You won’t know until you try.” Amelia wiggled her eyebrows.

I chewed my bottom lip. Maybe Amelia was right. Maybe I was just scared of getting hurt again. What if Brett was different? What if he was the one who could make me forget about all the pain in my past? Fuck it. Who was I even kidding? I wasn’t ready for this, but I was ready to face Brett where we first met: at the butcher counter. “After work, I’ll say hi to Brett at his supermarket.”

Amelia winced. “At his work? How would you like it if he showed up to your office unannounced?” She paused. “Stalkerish….”

The brilliant idea faded, and the color drained from my face. Fuck, I was bad at this. “Oh, come on. It is not stalkerish. So, what should I do then, text him?”

“You know what? Just go to the market. Pretend you’re shopping, and you bump into him. Life’s too short.” Amelia threw her hands up in the air, surrendering. I had been playing a game for three days with Brett and needed to break the cycle somehow. “But if you change your mind about the trip, just know I’ve already cleared that weekend to watch the girls if Peter can’t.”

“He and Joel are headed upstate that weekend.” I shook my head. If Peter could live, then why couldn’t I?

After my last meeting, I bolted out of the office, not even saying bye to Amelia, and raced to Brett’s work. When I entered the market, the smell of beef stew and roasted garlicky vegetables hit my nose. My stomach grumbled as I headed toward the back of the store where the butcher counter resided. In his apron with muscled arms on display, Brett talked to a female customer in her thirties. I hung back for a moment, observing him from afar. He sported a charming smile, laughing at something she said.

A pang of jealousy tightened in my chest. Was he flirting with her? Did he flirt with all the customers?

But no, I reminded myself. We weren't anything official yet. We had sex once. I had no claim on him.

“There she is,” said a bubbly female voice from behind.

I spun around to see Natalie in an emerald-green apron, blonde curls perfectly pulled back in a tight ponytail, and ice-blue eyes burning into my soul. “Hi, how are you?” I cleared the grain from my voice.

“Nice to see you’ve come back.” Natalie smiled and crossed her arms. “Are you looking for something in particular today?”

Other than your son? Not really. “I’m trying to figure that out. I need something for dinner.” I quickly glanced at the butcher counter, spotting Brett staring directly at me, his fierce gaze locked on me. And did I just see him clenching his jaw? Was he angry? And then I remembered. We had mind-blowing sex, he opened up to me, and I ghosted him for three days. Was I surprised? Not really. Was I hurt? Probably. But I deserved it.

“Well,” said Natalie perkily. “I could help you with that.”

My eyes snapped to Natalie, who smiled brightly and pointed to the fish counter. “Help with what?” I glanced at Brett one last time, but I made a mistake. Natalie caught me, and her smile faded.

“All right, well, what about salmon? It goes great on a bed of greens with a lovely side of potatoes. It would probably keep your stomach full for at least a few hours.” She moved closer to me and leaned her head as if sharing a secret. “Why don’t you follow me?”

Except, I didn’t move. I planted my feet and pointed to Brett as Natalie’s orbs widened. “I want steaks.”

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